Box flap combined pick-up lever and support for staplers to facilitate stapling



y 29, 1969 c. H. FAULKINGHAM 3,458,100 BOX FLAP COMBINED PICK-UP LEVER AND SUPPORT FOR STAPLERS T0 FACILITATE STAPLING Filed Jan. 20, 1967 III11:11:3 :IZZIIIZIIIIIIQJ I \lgl 3 U INVENTOR.

% CLIFFORD H. FAULKINGHAM United States Patent US. Cl. 227-154 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The combined pick-up lever and supporter device is characterized by a plate that is longer than it is wide, and on each side thereof, lengthwise, there are two parallel rails; there is relative movement between these tWo elements. At the forward end of the plate there is attached a lever, as by a shank to the plate, the lever extending forward of the plate. On the top surface of the plate there is an anchor pin, and on the top surface of one of the rails there is another anchor pin, these two pins being positioned near the rear end of the plate and the rail respectively. There is a spring that is connected at its respective ends to the two anchor pins and passing over a pulley on the same rail as the pin thereon, but forward thereof. The bottom of the hand stapler is attached, as by screws, to the top surface of each of the rails. In operation, it is the stapler with attached two rails that moves forward relative to the plate. The pickup lever attached to the plate is inserted between and under the edges of the lower flaps of the box. By then pushing obliquely downwardly on the stapler the pick-up, support lever would lift the lower flap while the stapler assumes the position parallel with the top flap upon which it would rest. The weight of the stapler would press down on the top flap, bringing it into contact with the lower flap. Then the stapler, which can be moved, is caused to eject staples into both the upper and the lower flaps of the box. The shank of the pick-up, support lever moves backward and forward in a slot that runs lengthwise in the base plate of the stapler.

This invention relates to a device to be installed or incorporated in either hand or power staplers, to support the inside flaps of cardboard paper boxes or cartons while the inside and outside flaps thereof are being stapled. The combined pick-up lever and supporter of my invention is of sufiicient length that it will pick up the inside flaps down inside of the box or carton and cause the free ends thereof to be brought up to a horizontal position, and firmly supported in this position with the upper flaps for the stapling operation. And the stapler attached to this combined pick-up lever and supporter device forthwith can place a staple outside the center line of the top flap or at the extreme inside end of the locus of the inner flap or at other chosen loci on the flaps. By its use staples can be placed at a very extensive range of places on the surface of the cardboard boxes or cartons, as will become obvious from a more detailed explanation later.

Cardboard boxes are usually constructed or fashioned to provide an open end top; and four flaps extend from, yet are integral with the four sides of the box at its upper extremity, to be folded over to enclose the open end of the box. At the other end of the box there are likewise four flaps integral with the 'boxs four sides. The conventional procedure in joining the flaps together to encase the contents of the box has been to staple the flaps or mechanically hold them by encircling tape or wire, usually adhesive tape, tape or wire being around major surfaces of the box. But it is recognized, and has been admitted in the Philip Mayer Patent No. 3,094,827 that,

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when the carton is only partially filled, the contents of the carton will not provide a bearing surface for the stapling device; and this patentee went so far as to assert: it is not possible to staple the overlapping flaps of a partiallyifilled cartona situation which this Mayer patent purported to overcome.

The present invention provides a device, that is to be installed or incorporated in either hand or power staplers, which will elevate then support the inside flaps from the edges thereof to the juncture of the flaps with the sides of the box, so that the flaps, i.e. outside and inner flaps below, may be stapled to each other, and regardless of whether the box is partially filled or otherwise. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device that will go under the inside edge of the lower flap and then elevate the lower flap to a horizontal position with the outer flap on top of the lower flap, so that the flaps may be securely stapled. Staples can be placed, by using this pick-up, support lever associated with the stapler, approximately anywhere on the surface of the cardboard box. The device of the present invention attached to or incorporated with the stapler can be operated with speed as will become obvious from reading subsequently of its mode of operation. This device is, furthermore, cheap to manufacture, especially when considering its performance and accomplishments. The flaps of the boxes can not drop down and injure any part of the contents of partially filled boxes, as is the situation when tape is used to seal the boxes, yet imperfectly does so.

More particularly, the device of my invention consists of a plate of greater length than width, constructed customarily from metal; on each side (longitudinally) of this plate are side or retaining rails that are parallel to one another to hold the plate in its appointed track. There is a sliding movement relatively between the plate and the two retaining rails. Attached to the forward end of said plate there is a combined pick-up lever and supporter. The attachment of these two elements is satisfactorily accomplished by a hole in the forward end of the plate to accommodate the shank of the pick-up supporter lever, there being means to hold the shank in this hole; this is but one way of fixing the lever to the plate. The plate contains an anchor pin for an activating spring, which is attached at one of its ends to the said anchor pin. On either one of the two parallel rails there is a pulley over which the actuating spring rolls. There is on this same rail an anchor pin to which the other end of the spring is attached; the pulley is forward of this anchor pin. The function of the pulley is to allow for a long spring, so that the spring will not ever be stretched substantially in the relative movement between the plate and the two side rails. The function of the spring is to keep the pick-up, support lever in as far forward a position as possible at all times, as it is advantageous to drive the staple as near the lever shank as possible. At that point the pressure is nearly all downward; but out nearer to the outer end of the lever when the staple is driven the leverage is increased, having a tendency to pull the end of the lever down and tipping the rear end of the plate up by making a pivot at the point near the front of the plate. At the outer end of the lever, such as 6 or 7", the leverage is great. Therefore the spring has a role of keeping leverage to a minimum. As the stapler is pushed forward without the spring being attached, the lever would go back relative to the stapler, and stay at one point in relation to the box, and as the stapler is moved backward the lever could be pulled from under the flap. The plate needs to be only about half the length of the rails. This prevents the plate from protruding from the back of the staple machine while the lever is in the rear position. This would not interefere with the operation of the stapler and device but might be in the way. As to the spring, the greatest tension is when the plate is as far back as the slot will allow. Then it is that the plate anchor pin is as far away from the pulley as possible. Therefore the spring would have to stretch. The least tension on the spring is when the plate anchor pin is as near the pulley as possible; then the spring is contracted. The spring has to stretch as the distance is increased.

The lower surface of the rails is attached to the upper surface of the staple magazine bottom plate by means of screws in the threaded holes in the rails; these are flat headed screws, and the holes in the staple magazine base are countered sunk. The supporter unit is within the stapler magazine. The stapler forms no part of the present invention.

In operation, the parallel rails, to which the stapler is attached or joined, move forward and backward not the plate with attached pick-up, support lever. The role of the pick-up lever is to elevate the free end of the inside flap of the box and support it; but equally important the bottom of the stapler presses down on the top flap to cause the two flaps to come close together parallelwise (90 difference between the hinging of the set of flaps). When the stapler is operated, placing staples, the outer flap is thereby joined to the inner flap of the cardboard box or carton. The stapler, after the pick-up, sup port lever has been inserted below the edge of one of the inner flaps and both this flap with the outer flap have been brought to a horizontal position, is customarily moved parallel with the slot that exists between the parallel edges of the outer flaps of the box. And at various places where the stapler is stopped, staples are sunk into the upper flap, thus joining it to the inner flap of the box. Then, the direction of movement of the stapler can be changed at will, thus .moving the support lever; and staples are sunk at other spots on the surface of the flap. Because of the lever element of my device, which lever has the dual role of support as well as pick-up of the flaps, the amount of pressure ordinarily applied to the stapler to eject the staples into the two supported flaps is not used, as lever under lower flap prevents stapler from lifting; but stapler is held so that flaps are fiat by using the staplers handle. The pressure in the use of my device will not push down the bottom of the box; pressure would open the slot between the opposing flaps. In all the stapling at various places on the bottom (surface of the upper end of the box) that is being closed, the parallel rails, to which the stapler is attached, move forward and backward in relation to the plate element with the support lever attached to the forward end of the said plate. But the stapler and my attached device can be turned horizontally, which enables staples to be placed in wide areas of the end of the box being stapled. The locus is not merely the sides of the slot between the 'outer flaps.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention, and also the details of this invention, will appear in the course of the following description. The drawing will illustrate the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a cardboard carton and the inventors device, showing pick-up, support lever under inner and outer flaps.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the box flap, combined pick-up lever and supporter device.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view (bottom) of this box flap pick-up lever and supporter device mounted in stapler.

The drawing illustrates a container formed of cardboard or other suitable, similar material, which container has four side walls; the showing is of the upper end thereof. The numeral 5 represents the outer flap of the container, which flap is integral with the side wall 6 of the box, and numeral 7 represents the inner flap, which is likewise integral with another side wall of the box. It is clear from the depicted cross-hatching that the open 4- ends of the two outer flaps are at an angle of with the open ends of the inner flaps, horizontally.

The numeral 4 identifies the stapler and is at the section thereof called the head; the numeral 1 designates the Wide crown handle and the numeral 2 the operating lever of the stapler. This stapler is attached to the box flap combined pick-up, supporter lever of the present invention, designated by the numeral 20. Referring to the drawing, more particularly to FIGURE 2, the two parallel side rails, bearing the numeral 12, form a track for the plate, identified 'by the numeral 3. There is a free sliding movement between the rails 12 and the plate 3. The top surface of the plate 3 is flush with the top surface of the two parallel rails, 12. From FIG. 2, looking at the rear end, it can be seen that each rail has an off-set portion, its cross-section being like an inverted L. correspondingly, the plate has a parallel, indented portion of inverted T shape, or groove, and mates with the parallel rails, affording sliding movement between the rails and the plate. Each rail has three spaced holes, numbered 13 for screws numbered 13' to attach the stapler, numbered 4, to the flap combined pick-up, supporter of the present invention.

On the plate 3, normally about one-half /2) of the length of the rails 12, there is near its rear end an anchor stud, numbered 11, to which the rear end of return spring 16 is attached. This spring extends up around roller or pulley, numbered 14, and back to the anchor pin 17 near the end of the rail 12. The pulley and this last mentioned anchor could be on the opposite rail than on the rail shown in the drawing (FIG. 2). At the forward end of plate 3 there is a hole, numbered 15, through which the shank 9 extends; and lever 8 extends well beyond the plate forward. The shank 9 is held by set-screw (allen screw), which is flush with the end of plate when screwed in. As shown in FIGURE 1, shank 9 in operation extends readily between the edges of the inner flaps; and lever 8 supports both the inner flaps 7 and the outer flaps 5.

From FIGURE 3 is will be observed that on the bottom side of base plate of the stapler, said bottom side bearing the numeral 19, there is a slot, numbered 18, positioned between the longitudinal edges of said plate; this slot extends a considerable distance toward the front end of the said base plate. In this slot the shank of lever 8 moves forward and backward relatively, simultaneously with the stapler. The stapler is mounted on the device of this invention by screws, numbered 13', as shown in the drawing, more particularly FIG. 3 thereof.

In operation, the wide crown stapler is grasped by its handle 1 by one hand and the operators other hand grasps lever, numbered 2. Then, by tilting the stapler, pick-up lever, numbered 8, is inserted between the edges of the outer flaps, numbered 5, and under the edge of one of the inner flaps, numbered 7. Then, the stapler while holding on its hand-grasping means, is caused, taking advantage of weight, to assume the position shown in FIGURE 1; from this figure it will be perceived that both the inner flap 7 and the outer flap 5 are supported by pick-up, support lever, numbered 8. The stapler is pushed forward in the direction of the slot between the outer flaps; by so doing the vortex of the angle of the pick-up lever, supporter will come in contact with the edge of the inside flap of the box. At this locus it remains. The stapler is continued to be moved forward until it is at the position shown, when by pushing down on the operating lever 2 of the stapler, a staple, numbered 10 in FIG. 1, is forced through both the outer and the inner flaps, 5 and 7, of the cardboard box. Then the stapler is moved backward along this same slot, and at chosen points additional and staced staples are forced into the outer and inner fiaps of the box. The greatest tension on the spring, numbered 16, is when the plate, numbered 3, is as far back as the slot will allow. Then it is that the plates anchor pin, numbered 11, is as far away from the pulley, numbered 14, as possible. Therefore in this position the spring would have to stretch. The least tension on the spring is when the plates anchor pin is as near the pulley as possible; then the spring is contracted. The spring has to stretch as that distance is increased.

The direction of movement of the stapler, hence the attached box flap combined pick-up, support lever combination of the present invention, can be changed by moving it around shank 9, using it as a pivot, as becomes clear from viewing FIGURE 1. In this way or mode staples can be put into the flaps not only along the opposite edges of the outer flaps of the box, but at various, selected points, to reinforce the holding power over the surface. The staple can be placed, to amplify this, in the surface of the flap that is near the vortex of the angle of the lever, supporter, or at its extreme end; and that is true for any position of thes lever effected by turning the stapler. For the pick-up, supporter lever is always under the staple that is being placed.

After all the staples that the operator desires have been placed in the flaps (the outer and inner fiaps united thereby) on one side of the bottom (upper end), it may be possible and practical to turn the stapler, i.e. revolve it, whereby the pick-up, support lever attached goes under the other flap of the box, the then continue to staple the flaps; this would complete the joining of the inner flaps to the corresponding outer flaps. If it is necessary to remove the stapler, this can be done by lifting the stapler back, and tilting it again, so that it and the entire assembly can be removed, then placed for the stapling operation for the other ends flaps in an analogous way. It is assumed that the box has been up-ended inthe interim, whereby the other end becomes accessible to the operator. After the stapling operation described in the paragraph above, wherein the contents have not been damaged by pressure on the flaps, the cardboard box is ready for shipping, storage, etc.

Without further elaboration, the foregoing will so fully explain the pith of my invention that others may, by applying current mechanical knowledge, readily adapt the same for use under various conditions. I desire it to be understood that the invention is not to be liimted to any particular form or arrangement of parts, except insofar as such limitations are included in the claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a device for attachment to a stapler, the combination of (1) a plate having greater length than width, (2) a rail on each side of the said plate, there being relative movement lengthwise between the plate and the two rails, (3) a pick-up, support lever attached to and near one end of the plate and extending forward from point of attachment, capable of insertion under the edge of the inner flap of a cardboard box and capable also of supporting both the inner and outer flaps of a cardboard box when the said pick-up lever is in substantial horizontal position, whereby the flaps of the said box can be stapled without substantial widening of the slot between the outer edges of flaps of the said box, and means under tension which urges the pick-up, support lever to assume as far forward a position as is possible.

2. A device as set out in claim 1, wherein the pick-up, support lever is substantially L-shaped, the shorter portion thereof being attached to the plate.

3. A device as set out in claim 1, wherein there is a hole near the end of the plate through which the shank of the pick-up support lever passes for attachment of the said lever to the plate.

4. A device as set out in claim 1, wherein the urging means under tension comprises a pulley attached to one of the parallel rails, an anchor pin attached to this same rail, an anchor pin also attached to the plate, these anchor pins being attached near the rear of the rail and plate respectively, and a spring attached to these said anchor pins and extending over the said pulley at the front end of the rail.

5. A device as set out in claim 1, wherein the pick-up, support lever is L-shaped and fastened by its shorter end to the plate and extending forward of the plate, wherein the urging means under tension comprises a pulley attached to one of the parallel rails, an anchor pin attached to this same rail but near the opposite and rear end thereof, an anchor pin also attached to near the rear end of the plate, and a spring attached to these said anchor pins and extending over the pulley.

6. A device as set out in claim 1, wherein the two parallel rails have an inverted L-shaped configuration making a longitudinal groove track, the plate, having an inverted T shape to fit into the track formed by the two rails, wherein the urging means under tension comprises a pulley attached to one of the parallel rails near its front end, an anchor pin attached to the same rail but near its rear, an anchor pin attached to the plate also near its rear, and a spring attached to these said anchor pins and extending over the said pulley.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 53381. 

